Wednesday, 14 December 2016

Christmas isn't just for kids

I, like many people, love this time of year and Christmas is always a special occasion. It's a time to spend with family and friends and to get involved with a little bit of magic, even if you've stopped truly believing.

It's fair when people say that Christmas becomes extra special again when you have children, as you get to see it all through their eyes.

But, why should you have to be under four foot in height to enjoy the fun and silliness of the season?

Last weekend, we went away for three days with Ethan and our dog and three couples - our best friends in the world. It was time for our annual mock Christmas celebrations (read about previous years' here, here and here). We've been getting together a few weekends before the real Christmas as a group for nine years now; cramming in to one of each other's houses or, more recently, booking a cottage somewhere scenic to spend time together and be big kids.

We cook a big breakfast, washed down with bubbles, and Christmas dinner with all the trimmings. We wear festive pyjamas, sing songs and play games. And, of course, we open presents.

Our view every morning

This year, we had matching PJs. We had a contest to design the best Christmas PJ top (hubs won, with a cartoon drawing of our group photo from last year's mock Christmas). We did the mannequin challenge at dinner. And we played Poundland luck dip, picking random presents out for each other. There may also have been a lip sync battle planned, complete with costumes...

It was another memorable event for our group and another milestone. Who knows where we will all be this time next year, for our 10th mock Christmas celebrations, but one thing's for sure - we will be together and we'll be acting like big kids again.